When Stanley Cohen and other scholars created folk devils numerous years ago, they had no idea that the concepts would one day be connected with something other than people, giving them a negative name as a result of their actions that are harmful to the majority of a society. As Nigerians and institutional stakeholders continue to examine the results of the Joint Admission Matriculation Board 2024 exams, our analyst observes that folk devils now encompass non-humans such as technologies and procedures used to prepare and write the exam.
The question remains: who is to blame for more than 70% of candidates scoring below 200? The search for folk devils by Nigerians on digital platforms and in various forums over the previous 72 hours has yielded mixed results. Our analysis of public interest in keywords associated with the examination body’s announcement of the results indicates that people are concerned about the fate of candidates who scored less than 200 in securing admission to various universities and other higher education institutions.
Analysis of the Google Search engine showed a rather big search for universities and Jamb scores, with 73.1% seeking information about various universities’ cut-off marks, resulting in an interest in knowing the revealed Jamb score. We also discovered a relative correlation between Jamb results and Jamb score (51.0%), Jamb results and pass (49.3%), and pass and universities (45.5%). Overall, our analyst adds that the Nigerian public has been quite interested in what has happened with Jamb, students, and outcomes in the last three days.
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Exhibit 1: Public interest in 24 hours (April 29 to April 30, 2024)
Technology
On digital platforms, candidates’ poor performance has been connected to their social media addictions. Some Nigerians, whom our analyst referred to as moral entrepreneurs due to the moral lens through which they have examined the awful performance, have identified excessive phone use and various TikTok activities of the candidates as the actual devils to be condemned. They believe that while social media has certain advantages, the disadvantages, especially for children and teenagers, outweigh the benefits. They claim that students frequently skip exam preparation in favour of social media material. One of the entrepreneurs notes that a family had to ban their 17-year-old daughter from using TikTok and not using an internet-enabled phone while preparing for WAEC and JAMB examinations.
Exhibit 2: Percolation of Public interest in 24 hours (April 29 to April 30, 2024)
Technical glitches and personal issues
According to reports, applicants fared poorly due to technological issues encountered throughout the exam. One moral entrepreneur believes that the general failure was driven by the candidates’ fears about information technology. Inadequate preparation, late arrivals, exam fever, and failing to meet on time all contributed to a negative outcome. Some students struggle with exams for a variety of reasons, including long study periods, illness, a lack of access to literature and parental pressure.
Students’ poor orientation
While some students opted to respond to questions at random, others were unable to read or respond to questions because of dishonest methods. A few pupils were even unaware of the questions posed. According to a moral entrepreneur, most applicants are accustomed to cheating, which results in inadequate study and SSCE exam failure.
Exam malpractice
It is challenging to persuade students to study because private institutions frequently assist them. The dismal outcomes in external exams will persist unless CBT for SSCE is introduced to reduce exam misconduct. Many parents make significant financial investments in well-paying schools, but this frequently results in early enrollment and unprepared children for the future. We are all impacted by this terrible truth, and if it isn’t resolved, there may be no more hope for education in our nation. These are narratives from moral entrepreneurs who approached the discussion from an exam malpractice perspective.